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Flyers set for first Boston game
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Matt Carle quietly leads all Flyers blueliners
in points so far this season. (Neat1325)
The Flyers should be ready to re-open their season against the Boston Bruins tomorrow night at home. The orange and black may be six games into the season already, but it sure feels like game one all over again.
Thanks to bizarre scheduling the Philadelphia Flyers have had one game smack in the middle of the last 11 days. The scheduling issues come during an Olympic year with an extended break period. Because of this terrible scheduling phenomenon the Flyers' may not only get off to a choppy start but have a rigorous finale to look forward to during their last few months.
Granted, a 3-2-1 start is not half terrible. They were all games though that the Flyers should have won. They outplayed five playoff teams to start the season only to lose to the Penguins in regulation thanks to a few gigantic mistakes and lost to the Ducks in shootout fashion by blowing a two-goal, third period lead. The away game at Florida in the middle of their unwanted break from an early hockey season was their worst effort.
Everyone will find out whether or not another long break will hurt the team once again when the Flyers do tomorrow night.
Though it is easy to blame the NHL for a pitiful job at scheduling, a lot of the issues with the team are the same over the course of these past three years. The popular tags onto the organization have been goaltending and penalties, but any educated hockey fan knows the real issues are not so obvious. The penalties are relatively non-factors to a team as skilled as the Flyers. In fact, Philadelphia has a tendency to take advantage of opportunities and turn problems into solutions. The goalie issue solves itself with a defensive system in place; something that on many nights head coach John Stevens does not seem to have working properly.
Coaching woes may have cost the Flyers in the past and may cost them yet. Their inability to prepare for games may have much more to do with the staff in place rather than the players on the ice. If these issues continue it may cost John Stevens his job. If the Flyers don't at least make the finals this year it could be the end for Stevens in Philadelphia.
This game against the Bruins will be telling. The Flyers sometimes have a tendency to start slow after breaks. If they get a lead they have to hold on to it for the remainder of the game. The defense has to play a manageable hockey game and make outlet passes to break out of the zone without costly turnovers taking the puck in the other direction. Face-offs need to be better.
The Bruins are another tough opponent starting out the season inconsistently. They have injuries as well. Right now the Flyers are desperate for two points to show they won't have the same issues as always. This game will tell a lot about the team and the direction their headed.
HOME TEAM: Philadelphia Flyers (3-2-1)
Who's hot :
Nobody at the moment on the Flyers is hot after playing only one game against the Florida Panthers mashed in between two 5-day break periods. Getting the players back into a game rhythm will be a point of emphasis for the team.
Who's not:
Braydon Coburn: Coburn has been struggling so far this season after being re-united with Kimmo Timonen. While many thought his play would only get better when paired with an all-star like Timonen, he has had issues keeping up with other players. With no injury on the record for Coburn, the long break may have been just what he needed to get his mind cleared.
Who to watch for
Claude Giroux: Giroux had been relatively quiet in the first couple games of the season when commanding his own scoring line made up of rookie James vanRiemsdyk and grinder Darroll Powe. He got hot right before the break, despite playing very well in every game so far this season. If he remains hot it won't take much for vanRiemsdyk and his new linemate, Ian Laperriere, to feed off of his incredible vision. On the power-play those two will change to Mike Richards and Simon Gagne making Giroux that much more deadly.
Ray Emery: Emery has had a rough time watching his defense fall apart in front of him for four straight games. Kimmo Timonen and Chris Pronger will come to play. There's absolutely no question about what they will bring to the ice. If Coburn remains an issue it will be up to Emery to make up for his mistakes. Ryan Parent, an underrated defensive defenseman, is out on the bottom pairing as well so Emery will likely be called upon to have a solid night in net.
What to watch for:
Even Strength Play: While Blair Betts may not be the most monumental skater on the Flyers' roster he may be the unsung hero. With him the team is 3-0-0. Without him they have lost two in regulation and another in a shootout. The Flyers' penalty kill can get along just fine without him when solid two-way skaters such as Richards, Gagne, Giroux, and Jeff Carter fill in, but spending time on the ice-man while down a man begins to wear players out. With the long break before hand it should not be an issue, but if the team plays sloppy in the final period a long game filled with many trips to the box, it is the injury to Betts that could cost the orange and black a tight game or yet another third period lead.
Unsung/under the radar player watch:
Matt Carle: The young defenseman has started the season on fire. With a future hall-of-famer as a partner, Carle has been able to unleash his full offensive potential. While he has been known to have issues on his own blueline in the past, most of them have been masked by Pronger's presence. If he gets into a rhythm skating, passing, and shooting, he could have a big night.
Line combinations:
Scott Hartnell—Jeff Carter—Danny Briere
Simon Gagne—Mike Richards—Arron Asham
James vanRiemsdyk—Claude Giroux—Ian Laperriere
Mika Pyorala—Darroll Powe—Dan Carcillo
* Out of the break the Flyers made some changes. Mika Pyorala, who started the season on the top line has been dropped to the fourth in favor of Ian Laperriere. Darroll Powe remains the fourth line center until the return of Betts, at which point Arron Asham will likely switch with Powe or get scratched. For now the lines remain shifted due to Betts' injury and Pyorala's poor play.
Defensive pairings
Matt Carle—Chris Pronger
Braydon Coburn—Kimmo Timonen
Ole-Kristian Tollefsen—Danny Syvret
* With Ryan Parent's minor injury, both Ole-Kristian Tollefsen and Danny Syvret get the start on the third pairing. Parent is expected to be out until the 26th.
Goaltenders
Ray Emery
Brian Boucher
* After yet another long break Emery will start. He will have played in all seven Flyers games so far.
Injury report
Center Blair Betts is now healthy from his dislocated shoulder but remains out of the lineup until the next game. Defenseman Ryan Parent remains out until the 26th thanks to a lower body injury.
AWAY TEAM: Boston Bruins (4-4-0)
by Mark Marino, Boston Bruins Examiner
Who's hot :
Patrice Bergeron: In a surprising turn of events, Marc Savard joined Milan Lucic on the long-term injured reserve list yesterday, before the game against Nashville, with a broken foot. Upon hearing about the news, a natural uneasy reaction occurred over me knowing the teams leading scorer would be sidelined for four to six weeks. On the other hand, a sense of optimism came to light and immediately thought of the other players who would step up their game in Savard's absence. No. 37 definitely showcased it last night, notching a goal, plus-1, and winning 11 of 17 falloffs. Along with Tim Thomas, Bergeron was the best player on the ice last night, elevating his game in lieu of No. 91. Back-check, forecheck, and through the neutral zone, Bergeron shined. He now has four points, nine shots on goal, and has upped his face-off winning percentage to the team's best, 53-percent.
Face-offs: The Bruins won the ever-so-important face-off battle last night, winning 62-percent on the dot. Steve Begin 73-percent; Patrice Bergeron 65-percent; Trent Whitfield 55-percent; David Krejci 60-percent.
Who's not:
Back-checking: For the most part, the Bruins did a good job on the back-check last night. However, the two goals-against were due in part of the lack of back-checking. Steve Begin, who scored the game-winning goal, failed to pick-up Predators Jerred Smithson on the first goal of the game. On Colin Wilson's goal, his first NHL, newcomer Brad Marchand was stuck between a rock and a hard place--losing Wilson up the ice, through the neutral zone, and unable to catch-up to the former Boston University star on a Nashville three-on-two.
Who to watch for
Tim Thomas: Thomas stopped 28 of the 30 shots on net last night and many of those were high scoring chances against. Thomas proved last night why he was the Vezina Trophy winner of last season. He made key saves throughout the game, without many second chance opportunities for the Predators by not allowing "juicy" rebounds. Look for him to start in net again tonight, carrying the momentum of last night's game to get this team back on track.
What to watch for:
A better start: The Bruins definitely started off last night's game on their heels. With the addition of four new players in the line-up--Whitfield, Sobotka, Marchand, Paille--the B's didn't play with confidence or chemistry until the 21st minute of the game. Coming off a much-needed win last night at the TD Garden, look for Boston to start the game tonight at the Wachovia Center with the same momentum as they ended last night.
Defense: The Bruins face an extremely tough team in the Philadelphia Flyers tonight, and the defense needs to be on their game. The Flyers are ranked fifth in the NHL in goals per game (3.50), sixth on the power play (27.3%), and fifth on the penalty kill (86.7%).
Unsung/under the radar player watch:
Vladimir Sobotka & Brad Marchand: Arguably the most impressive training camp this off-season, Marchand got his well-deserving call up to the Bruins for last night's victory. Despite a hiccup on Wilson's goal, Marchand notched his first career NHL point, a nifty assist, in his first NHL game on Michael Ryder's goal in the second period. Sobotka, who is no stranger to being called up to the Boston Bruins from Providence, had a decent performance last night, logging over 10 minutes of ice time, one shot, while registering two hits. Look for these two players to contribute in whatever role they are put in to. Marchand was on the second line with Michael Ryder, centered by Patrice Bergeron, while Sobotka was teamed-up with Blake Wheeler and newcomer Trent Whitfield.
Line combinations:
Marco Sturm—Krejci—Recchi
Brad Marchand—Patrice Bergeron—Michael Ryder
Daniel Paille—Steve Begin—Byron Bitz
Vladimir Sobotka—Trent Whitfield—Blake Wheeler
Defensive pairings
Zdeno Chara—Derek Morris
Andrew Ference—Dennis Wideman
Mark Stuart—Matt Hunwick
Goaltenders
Tim Thomas
Tukka Rask
Injury report
Milan Lucic is out 4-6 weeks with a broken right index finger. Marc Savard is out 4-6 weeks with a broken left foot. Shawn Thornton is listed as day-to-day but will make the road trip to Philly
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